Rockbridge County artists & artisans

the long version

In Rockbridge County Artists & Artisans, Barbara Crawford and Royster Lyle, Jr., trace the development of many artisans' activities in Rockbridge County - in fine arts, textiles, furniture, tall clocks, rifles, ironwork, and pottery - from 1750 through the post Civil War years. Some of the artifacts documented were created by renowned American artists such as Frederic Church and Edward Hicks; most were produced by the county's Scotch-Irish or German immigrants and their descendants. The result of more than a decade of research, Rockbridge County Artists & Artisans provides fascinating stories and new information on how the arts and everyday crafts flourished in this picturesque region. An especially valuable chapter profiles four hundred artists and artisans, whose work is described in brief biographies. As the detailed study of a single county, the book serves as a model for localities in understanding and preserving their past.